A Guardian's Homecoming
by W. Vandom
Summary: After a trauma drives Will from Heatherfield she ends up on the streets until a new goverment agency takes her in. Now years later she must return to Heatherfield on assignment as a guardian but not the kind from Candracar.
1. Chapter 1

A Guardian's Homecoming  
A fanfiction story by W. Vandom

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I'll have the next chapter for hate or Fear up in the next day or two so until then I hope you enjoy the first chapter of my first fanfic that will be based of my ideas and influence from other books, shows and maybe anime. The first chapter especially is graphic and deals with rape so feel free to back out now, otherwise read on if you are okay with that and let me know what you think about it.

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Will stood inside Matt's house watching out of the front window as a storm raged on outside. It was getting dangerously close to her curfew but the thunderstorm was even more dangerous, the winds howling at up to forty miles per hour and the frequent bursts of lightning. The power was already out keeping Will from calling home since she lost her cell earlier and Matt said he left his at a friends. Without power the only phone in the house wouldn't work being cordless.

Her mom was going to be so furious and with the way things have been going lately she doubted Susan would give her much of a chance to explain. Ever since Susan married Dean it was like Will wasn't even close to being important to her mom. Will had joked to herself that Susan was pregnant, that it was just hormones, but she knew better. Susan wasn't pregnant, they weren't even married for more than a couple of weeks, and even if she was there was no way the hormones would be effecting the woman yet.

The curfew was the least of Will's worries though as she didn't exactly want to stay there with Matt's parents and baby sister being out of town. Lately Matt has been pushing her to sleep with him and Will just wasn't ready for that. At first he was understanding about it but he was starting to get more pushy about it. He even resorted to verbally abusing her and so far had gotten mad enough to smack her twice. She was trying her best to look the other way while debating just giving in because she truly loved him. She was just too afraid to take that step yet. She had never been with anyone like that and it was a huge step for her, one that scared her on some levels.

"Why do you keep watching out the window?" Matt asked as he came up behind her to wrap his arms around her waist while resting his chin on the top of her head. She could see the two of them reflected in the window with the little bit of light the candles around the room was providing.

"I need to get home or my mom is going to kill me." Will sighed while snuggling into the warm embrace. She was silently praying that for tonight Matt would go back to the loving boyfriend he was just a few months ago. Hell, Matt was much better just a few weeks ago compared to the last week.

"The rain isn't going to let up anytime soon." Matt said while leaning over to kiss the side of Will's neck. "Come on baby, there is so much more we can be doing."

"Matt, please, I already told you." Will sighed as she pulled away from Matt.

"Damn it, Will! I give you so much, why the hell won't you give me the one thing I want!" Matt screamed scaring Will a little. She started to edge toward the door deciding that it was better to face the storm outside than the one brewing in her boyfriend's eyes.

"Maybe I should just go, Matt." Will said as she started shaking a little.

"No, I think you should stay." Matt growled out as he reached out to grab a fistful of red hair.

"Let me go!" Will begged before being yanked hard toward him, making her cry out in surprise and pain.

"No Will, I don't think I will." Matt snarled as he picked her up like a sack of potatoes, ignoring her as she screamed and kicked. He stalked over to the couch and threw her down on it roughly while not caring about her cry.

"What the hell, Matt?" Will asked as she started to get up only to have Matt backhand her hard, knocking her back down to the couch. She couldn't keep the tears from falling as a sob escaped. She held the spot on her cheek where a large bruise was forming.

"You little bitch, I'm sick and tired of giving and giving while all you do is take and take!" Matt snarled as he started yanking at her pants. "No more you little slut! I tried to be nice, I really did, but if you aren't going to give it to me then I'll just take it."

The frenzied look in his eyes was really scaring her as she fought with him trying to keep her pants on. He reared back before punching her in the side making her gasp in pain. He rained down strike after strike making her scream out in pain. The torture seemed to last for what seemed like eternity before finally stopping and allowing her to try curling into a ball to protect herself. She was in too much pain now to fight back, too weak to struggle as Matt yanked her jeans off before tearing her shirt off her.

"Please stop!" Will sobbed weakly while trying to push Matt away as he lowered himself down on her, yanking her bra down as he did.

"Stupid bitch, you just don't learn." Matt whispered mockingly as he caressed her cheek before smacking her hard again. Will clenched her eyes shut though it didn't stopped the tears. For the next hour she tried to blank out all of the feelings and pain that Matt was causing her. She tried not to think of what he was stealing from her as he shattered what little innocence she had left. She lost most of her innocence in a war not of her making fighting against Phobos and then Nerissa. Now, the little bit of innocence she had left, what she was planning on giving Matt when she was ready, was stolen by the one man she thought she could trust with her life.

Long after Matt rolled off of her and she could bring herself to move, though it was causing a lot of pain, Will opened her eyes. The candles had long burned out and the bastard was long gone giving her time to fix her bra and hurriedly pull her jeans and ripped shirt back on, her panties a loss as Matt just ripped them off. Limping to the door she grabbed her shoes only stopping long enough to put them on.

Thankfully the storm had let up mostly, the rain not as hard as it was earlier allowing her to limp away from the house and toward home. Her entire body was hurting, she was sure she had some severely bruised ribs if they weren't cracked from the beating Matt gave her.

What would usually take her maybe fifteen minutes now took forty-five as the pain she was feeling slowed her down considerably. She thought about finding a payphone but she knew there was none along the path. It looked like it was too late to go to anyone's home but she wasn't sure what time it was, it didn't really matter anymore. She just wanted to go home, she wanted her mom. Will just wanted Susan to hold her and make everything better.

Making it to her apartment finally, Will groaned when she realized that the power was still out. She was frozen to the bone as she forgot her jacket back at Matt's leaving her soaked. Climbing the steps at a mind numbingly slow pace, Will finally made it to her door before realizing that she also left her keys in her jacket. She was about to knock when the door flung open leaving the shadowy figure of Susan standing in the door. Even with the little bit of candle light Will still couldn't see the woman's face but she was sure Susan was beyond furious.

"Where the hell have you been?" Susan snapped, obviously unable to see just how bad Will was hurt, or the woman just didn't care. "I pay for your cell phone so you can call home, and what do you do? You turn it off!"

"Mom." Will croaked out but Susan didn't give her a chance before tearing into her while backing away from the door allowing Will to enter. As soon as Will limped by Susan continued her rant.

"I have had it with your attitude and lack of respect lately for not only myself, but Dean as well. I have done everything I can for you, and you, I can't even deal with you now. Get the hell to your room and we will talk about this in the morning!"

"But!" Will cried out.

"Don't you dare but me, get the hell to your room!" Susan snarled. Will hung her head low as tears once again began falling freely. She was just raped and beaten by her boyfriend and now her own mother wouldn't even listen to her. As far as she knew she might need to go to the hospital but her own mother didn't even care.

Slamming the door shut Will stumbled into the room peeling off her dripping clothes and kicking off her muddy shoes. It didn't take long to get changed into a dark red sweater and another pair of jeans besides fresh socks, underwear and dry shoes. After she got dressed she dumped her backpack out on the floor cleaning all of the school supplies out of it. She stuffed as many changes of clothes as she could into it and what money she had hidden in her dresser but she left her wallet back at Matt's as it was in her jacket.

Throwing the bag onto her back with a wince from moving too much Will took one last look back before seeing a folding picture frame on her nightstand. Both pictures in it was of happier times, one with all of WITCH from one of their beach excursions. The other was taken during one of Will's birthdays having Susan hugging Will and both smiling at the camera. She grabbed the sole reminder of good times there and climbed out of the window onto the fire escape.

* * *

Susan sighed as she got up out of bed extra early leaving Dean sleeping peacefully in the bed. She was thankful that the storm ended and the power was back on as she no longer needed to use the candles. Normally she would love the smell of them but they were upsetting her stomach last night. Just about anything lately would make her throw up and just not early in the morning either. She has had morning sickness for almost a week and it was starting to kill her. She was snapping at both Dean and Will which she was surprised that the two put up with it.

Taking a deep breath as Susan carefully made her way to Will's room she steeled her nerves for what she was going to do. She knew she was harsh with Will last night and intended to apologize and tell her that she was pregnant. The only thing was that she conceived the child just over two months ago which was before Dean and her married.

Ever since she found out about it Susan had been dreading telling Will as she wanted to set a good example for her daughter and what did she do? She got pregnant out of wedlock which was something she didn't even want to think about her little girl doing. Will was much too young to even think about it but Susan knew that Will wasn't going to be happy. Will was most likely going to be very disappointed at the very least and very pissed at the worst.

Susan loved Will very much and despite the arguments and the growing animosity that Will was growing towards Dean, Susan's love for either hasn't changed. She knew she had been a little hard on Will lately but with all the stress on Susan, and the way the redhead had been acting, the older woman's nerves were at their end. She tried talking to Will but it was like a few years ago as she refused to open up and everything just ended up badly as another fight just started.

The strange thing was that Will seemed more accepting of Dean before the marriage but just before it the redhead started acting differently. It continued even after the wedding and when he was alone with Will she got more disrespectful and angry towards him. It just didn't make sense to Susan and every attempt she made to find out what was wrong was met with anger and an uncalled for attitude by her daughter. Because of everything Susan wondered if maybe she made a mistake marrying Dean since it was obviously causing so much strife and tension between everyone.

Opening up her daughter's room Susan stepped inside while wondering why the light was on. Surely when the power came back on Will would have turned it off. Seeing the books and paper scattered in the middle of the floor and the obviously unslept in bed Susan started to worry. There were clothes scattered on the floor by the closet and dresser and the doors were wide open showing the lack of a lot of clothing.

"Dean!" Susan cried as she stumbled to the bedroom door, "DEAN!"

* * *

The next morning Will woke up under a tree in a small hiking trail on the outskirts of Heatherfield. She was thankful that the rain stopped before she left home and was even more grateful that this area didn't seem to get hit by the storm. She wasn't sure if it was because of the tall, leafy tress blocking the rain or if the storm actually didn't go trough this path. Either was she was dry if not warm but at least she was one for two.

She would have been a lot farther away by now if she could have just flew but that was impossible. It had been about two months now since all five of the girls lost their power. No one knew what was wrong and there was no word from Candracar or the council on what was happening. All the girls knew was that they lost their powers including their supposed eternal gifts leaving them helpless if something happened.

Still hurting pretty badly Will stumbled out of the hiking trail pushing herself into continuing before someone she knew spotted her. She just didn't want to deal with anyone from Heatherfield anymore. Her mother wanted nothing to do with her, her friends had actually accused her of doing something to the heart severing their link and her so called boyfriend beat the hell out of her and raped her. No, there was nothing left in Heatherfield and Will intended to put as much distance between herself and it as possible.

It took a few hours to make it the rest of the way out of Heatherfield into the neighboring town. The two cities were as different as night and day as Heatherfield was clean and was virtually peaceful and for the most part crime free. It's neighbor Lowerton was much different, it was dirty and there were plenty of homeless people. Most of them wasn't homeless because of bad circumstances though which made it dangerous as they were mostly made up of drunks and druggies. It scared Will a little as she had heard so many horror stories about the place but she knew no one would look for her here for awhile giving her plenty of time to get through the town to Lucasville.

She was growing very tired as the physical pain, though dulled a little, was draining her strength. To make matters worse she had nothing for breakfast and the farther she walked the closer to lunch it was getting. Her throat was already sore from all of the crying and screaming and it was only getting worse with nothing to drink. No matter how much she pushed herself though she just didn't know how much farther she could walk.

It was near noon when she collapsed on a bench at a bus stop gasping in pain while trying to catch her breath. She promised herself that if she could make it to the other side of town before nightfall then she would rest and buy something to eat with what little she had. A small part of her was wondering if it wasn't better to just turn back as she had no idea where she was really heading or what she planned to do. All she knew was that she wanted away from the place that she once called home.

"What happened to you dear?" A soft voice asked from in front of Will. Looking up she saw an older woman whose hair was graying looking sadly at Will. The woman wore a white doctor's coat over a plain white blouse and black slacks. The small pair of glasses made Will want to think the woman almost resembled a hawk from the sharp features.

"It doesn't matter." Will sighed turning to look away from the woman.

"Have you gotten those injuries checked out?" The woman asked and sighed when Will shook her head no. "Then come along, I run a clinic a block up the road. I'll get you checked out and make sure that you are ok."

"I don't have enough to cover it or an ID." Will said expecting that to get the woman to give up and move on.

"That isn't problem young lady, we run a free clinic for all those and need and you look like you may be in need." The woman said reaching out a hand to Will. "My name is Betty Davis, and you are?"

"My name is," Will said as she took the hand allowing the woman to help her up while hesitating a moment trying to think up a name. "Susan."

"Well Susan, come on and I will get you all patched up." Betty said leading the two down the street.

The clinic was small and run down and even though it looked like they kept it clean as they could it still was a little dirtier than Will was used to. She guessed it was from some of the homeless people that must have come in here and didn't care about what they did.

"Why do you run a free clinic?" Will asked softly wondering where everyone was. "And where is everyone?"

"Lunch hour, they still have another forty minutes but when I saw you I couldn't not help you." Betty said while making sure that all of the lights were on in the small waiting room. "I take it you don't want to fill out any paperwork?"

"I'd rather not." Will sighed while shaking her head. She kept looking back and forth making sure to remember where all of the exits where as the woman led her to the back and into one of the small examination rooms.

"Ok Susan, hop up on the bed for now." Betty directed and paused until Will was settled on the dull gray examination bed before continuing. "I am going to ask you some questions and I want complete honesty. You don't have to mention any names but I need to know what happened if I am to treat you properly."

* * *

Herbert was tired when he finally made it home late in the morning since he had to wait for the storm to stop and the power to come back on so he could lock up. He made it home just before daybreak and was relieved that there didn't seem to be any damage to the outside of the house. He knew his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter would still be out of town since they wouldn't risk driving in the torrential downpour. Matt would most likely be in bed still or up planning a day with Will.

He had to smile thinking of the wonderful red haired girl who stole Matt's heart and the rest of the Olsen family to. She was so beautiful, smart and kind and the chemistry she had with Matt and the family made her seem to just fit right in. She was also a hard worker as she had proven time and time again at the pet store and he planned to one day leave it to Will if she wanted. She had once told him that she wanted to be a vet someday and help animals, maybe having a small office like his in a pert store.

Walking into the house he hung up his jacket noticing that Will's was hanging there as well. It wasn't unusual so he didn't worry about it as the girl left it there plenty of times when it was hot out but her mother made her wear it to be safe. A bit of pink fabric on the floor near the couch caught his eye though making him pause to pick it up. It turned out to be a pair of ripped panties which bright mixed feelings to the old man. He was happy for the young couple if they loved each other enough to take their relationship to this step. He knew Will and knew she wouldn't do something like that unless she truly loved Matt. On the other hand he hoped that the two used protection at the very least.

It took a few moments of debating on what he should do but figured it was best not to upset the boys parents and decided to hide the evidence and have a long talk with the teens later. Of course there was the motion activated teddy cam that his daughter-in-law insisted on buying to spy on the babysitter making sure she wasn't hurting the baby Olsen girl. He was going to have to go through the tape and find out if it caught Matt and Will doing anything and delete it before the rest of the Olsen family got home.

Taking the panties Herbert grabbed the teddy bear off the mantle and went up to his room. It took a few minutes to get the thing hooked up to his TV as he wasn't very good with the stuff like this. He finally got it to play and was fast forwarding it through the babysitter and his granddaughter. The young lady absolutely adored the little girl and did everything possible to care for her.

When the video darkened Herbert was about to stop and delete it to give Matt and Will their privacy when he heard Will cry out on the tape. He sat frozen in absolute horror as his grandson went on to beat the young redhead and rape her. He had to stop the tape when it was starting but he was sick at what he saw. How could Matt do such a thing? He didn't know but he had to make sure Will was ok.

After checking for Matt and finding nothing Herbert hurried back to the living room. He grabbed the phone and quickly dialed the Vandom, or Collins, apartment. After a few rings someone finally picked up and to Herbert's horror it was a frantic Susan.

"Will, is that you? Are you okay?" Susan asked frantically, it was easy to tell that the woman was crying and barely holding it together.

"Susan, it's Herbert Olsen." Herbert said as a knot grew in his stomach. "You haven't seen Will since last night?"

"She came home but she ran away." Susan cried, her voice becoming a little hard to understand. "Please tell me that she's there with you!"

"I'm sorry Susan, something happened last night and I think you should see it first hand. I can bring it over if you prefer." Herbert explained sadly.

"Please bring it, I don't think Susan is any condition to go anywhere right now." Dean said over the line. Herbert guessed the man took over the call from his wife as she could be heard sobbing in the background.

"I'll be right over then." Herbert sighed. There was truly no rest for the weary but he didn't deserve rest right now. His own grandson beat and raped someone Herbert saw as a granddaughter and it sickened him. How could Matt do it, he never did anything even remotely cruel like that before. What had happened to his beloved grandson to make him do such a thing?

* * *

"It looks like there was no tearing and the worse physical injuries were a few cracked ribs, thankfully none were broken. Whoever did this to you was a monster." Betty sighed while handing Will two prescription bottles. "One of these is an antibiotic which you need to make sure to take. The other is a pain pill but I don't want you taking them unless you truly need them. Normally the pain pills is something we don't hand out easily but you will more than likely need them."

"I'm sorry for freaking out like that." Will sighed, she couldn't believe she started screaming and freaking out like she did. According to Betty when the woman was examining her any damage such as tearing Will started thrashing and crying while begging Matt not to hurt her. Betty tried to get Will to tell her more when Will calmed down but she refused to.

Betty explained flashbacks to Will and that a lot of victims of sexual assault have to deal with them. There was a counselor that worked with that clinic that Betty wanted Will to go see but all the redhead could do was promise to think about it. If the older woman reported what happened then the police would be swarming the area trying to find her if her mom bothered to report her missing which Will doubted.

"There is nothing to be sorry for, I just want to help you. No one should have to deal with what you are and especially not someone as young as you." Betty sighed.

"I'm nineteen." Will said but she had a feeling Betty knew that it was a lie.

"Just take care of yourself and if you need anything at all I will help you, okay?" Betty said while shaking her head. Will could tell the older woman was a little disappointed about the lie of her age but was sincere with helping her. Will didn't want the police involved though, she just wanted to forget everything and get as far away from Heatherfield as possible.

"I will, thank you Betty." Will said as she gave the older woman a small smile before leaving the small clinic to try and figure out where she could go. She spent a much longer time in the clinic than she expected to and it was growing later in the day. It was well past noon as the clinic reopened while Betty was seeing to her and she knew she spent some time in there after that. Hearing her stomach growl loudly Will gave in, she needed something to eat and keep up her strength if she was to keep running.

"Damn girl, when was the last time that you ate?" A girl asked as Will rounded the corner away from the clinic. Looking up Will saw a girl about her age with short dirty blond hair that stood up on spikes. She was leaning up against the building, her blue eyes brighter and with a spark in them that Will just didn't expect. She had on a white tank-top that hugged her and showed off her midriff and a generous amount of cleavage though it had stains on it. The straps of the girl's bra was easily visible though they were also white matching the top. She had on a pair of dull colored jeans that had several rips and tears in them and also had a few stains and was clearly dirty. Her feet was covered by a pair of old combat boots and a pair of fingerless gloves were on her hands.

"Yesterday." Will said while blushing a little from embarrassment.

"Are you new on the streets?" The girl asked as she pushed away from the wall while her eyes roamed over Will as the redhead shook her head no.

"I'm not a whore or druggie." Will whispered while watching the girl's expression change from curious to angry.

"Neither am I, do I look like one?" The girl asked angrily scaring Will a little. "Not everyone out here is out here because we got hooked on drugs or whatever. Some of us just doesn't have a choice. Tell me Red, what are you doing out here?"

"I'm not homeless." Will squeaked.

"Really? Then you have a home to go back to? You have a family waiting for you?" The girl sneered though Will's silence was all the answer she needed. "Then that makes you homeless, just like me!"

Will's head was spinning as she realized what the girl said was true. Will was homeless now, one of those people that a lot of the students at Sheffield made fun of. She never made fun of them but she believed the stories of most being trash.

"I'm out here because I choose to be, it's a hell of a lot better out here than home with an alcoholic father who can't keep his hands to himself." The girl said then stopped as she studied the expression on Will's face and the injuries. Her voice softened as she continued, "Something like that happened to you, didn't it?"

"Maybe." Will said softly, it wasn't her father but it was someone else that she loved and trusted.

"Well Red, you're homeless now and you are going to get eaten alive if someone doesn't show you the ropes." The girl said holding out her hand, "Name's Danny, stick with me and I'll show you everything you need to know."

After a few moments of staring at the girl's hand Will finally reached out and grabbed it, "My name's Will."


	2. Chapter 2

A Guardian's Homecoming  
A fanfiction story written and developed by W. Vandom  
I don't own WITCH or any other story elements I borrowed from other series. I do however own Danny but don't mind if anyone wants to use her in their story.

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Writing is a lot harder than one would think but it is pretty fun. I do want to thank XV-Dragon for the advice on how to choose a title as I was having trouble naming this story. I spell checked this chapter and gave it a quick once over and didn't see any mistakes but I wanted to get this posted for Halloween since the lastf part of it introduces a big part of the story as well as being my first attempt at a short horror scene. This chapter does contain some mature elements so if you are mature enough to handle it read on. Thank you everyone who has reviewed and added me to your lists.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

EDIT: I want to thank Bonar for taking the time of correcting a lot of mistakes that I should have caught, so thank you. They're all fixed now, I hope...

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"It's admittedly not the best, Red, but it's something to keep you from starving." Danny said as she stood next to Will waiting in line. The church was rather small compared to some of the ones Will saw, but it was pretty. She was a little nervous though as she was roped into this by this strange girl who practifcally dragged her here.

Here was supposedly a church that gave out meals a few times a week to the homeless which was who Will guessed was standing in line with them. The two girls were getting a few looks, but so far nothing bad, just curious glances. Will suspected it was the bruising on her face that was drawing the attention, but she wasn't sure.

"I have a little money." Will whispered to Danny while wondering if she should even be there. These people needed this food, but she could probably pay for a weeks worth of cheap meals. Of course she was also nervous being around so many homeless people as memories of students back at Sheffield saying that most of them was worthless drunks or drug addicts that would cut your throat without a second thought. The people didn't seem like that though, in fact some of them greeted them cheerfully and made small talk as the line slowly moved forward. They seemed like nice people, but still Will was a little cautious and scared.

"Keep hold of it in case of emergencies, Red, but don't wave it around." Danny said, "While most people here are nice and probably trustworthy there are those who wouldn't hesitate to take it from you. They will even resort to using force to get it from you."

"Danny is right girl." The old woman said that was behind them in line. "Some people will take every chance to get what they want from you. If you are new on the streets then I suggest sticking with someone trustworthy."

"Like me." Danny agreed, "You need to learn who to trust Red, and your first lesson is that looks can be deceiving."

"It's true, first look would tell you Danny here is a little slut." The woman said smirking.

"Gee, thafnks a lot you old hag." Danny said glaring at the old woman making Will crack a little smile.

"She isn't though, Danny is one of the best people you will meet out here on the streets. Just have to get past her ruff exterior." The old woman said laughing a little, "I'm sorry I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Jessie."

"My name is Will." Will said giving the older woman a smile.

"Just stick with Danny here and she will show you everything you need to know." Jessie said, "Just don't dress slutty like her."

"Don't worry you old bat, I'll show her everything you showed me." Danny said giving the older woman another glare, "And I don't dress slutty for one, and secondly I can't help it if everything I find is either too tight or too lose."

"Thank you." Will said smiling at both of them grateful for them, but still a little wary despite their peaceful vibe. The three grew silent as the line move forward again putting them next to get their food.

"Oh honey, what happened to you." A woman wearing an apron serving the food asked with concern on her face.

"I don't want to talk about it." Will sighed as she followed Danny's example of picking up a tray and holding it out to the woman with the apron. "I'm sorry, it's just..."

"You don't have to explain dear." The woman said giving Will some mashed potatoes and gravy, meat loaf, carrots and a roll. "But if you need someone to talk to that is what we are here for. To help all of God's children who are in need."

"Thank you." Will said as she picked up one of the foam cups and poured some of the ice water from the pitcher into it like Danny did.

"I hope you enjoy your meal afnd if you ever need anything at all please don't hesitate to ask." The woman said.

"Thank you." Will said a little surprised as she turned and followed Danny to one of the tables. So far everyone she met seemed to be pretty nice and helpful destroying even more of the image she had of the place and the homeless people that were here. So far it was nothing like what she expected.

"The food can be a little bland, but it's good and its hot." Danny said taking a bite of her meatloaf. "Remember what I said though, save your money for emergencies. This church and the other food kitchens are paid for through donations and every once in awhile they don't get enough meaning no meal. Having a little money keeps you from having to resort to eating from dumpsters."

"Come on, Danny, no one eats from dumpsters. That's just gross." Will said though she regretted it as a hurt expression flitted across the blonde's face for a second.

"Red, when you don't have anything to eat for a week you will do anything for a little food." Danny sighed, "Even things you know you will regret or things that may seem disgusting."

"I'm sorry." Will sighed hanfging her head.

"Don't sweat it Red, you are still new here, but you will learn." Danny said reaching over to squeeze the redhead's hand comfortingly. "I'll do my best to keep you from having to resort to that, but all of us have to at one point or another Red."

"Danny, why are you being so nice? I don't even know you really, but you've been so nice to me so far." Will asked taking a bite of her own meatloaf. It was actually kind of good, nothing like her own mother's, but still it wasn't half bad. The thought of her mother made her tear up a little, but she rubbed those tears away. She had a hard time admitting it, but despite what Susan did Will missed her, even if it hadn't even been twenty-four hours since last seeing her.

"Hey Red, cheer up." Danny said with a smile, "I'm helping you because I want to and because you remind me of myself when I first ended up on the street here. I don't know what exactly happened to you, but I won't ask. I know when you are ready to talk you will, but remember that I'm here for you and Jessie will be to. I saw you leave Betty's clinic so I bet she would be there to help you to."

"Thanks." Will said before stuffing another bite of meatloaf in her mouth. She was relieved that Danny wasn't going to pressure her, but the redhead still wasn't sure if she was going to stay.

"Anytime red, now eat your meal before it gets cold." Danny said playing with her potatoes a bit with the plastic fork.

* * *

"I can't believe it." Susan sobbed as she threw herself in her husband's arms to cry in his chest. She couldn't believe herself either, she should have known something was wrong with Will when she came home.

"Herbert, I think maybe you should leave." Dean said stiffly while glaring at the old man.

"Keep the tape Dean, and when you call the police I'll make sure to tell them the truth." Herbert sighed, but something was bothering him about the tape. He thought it was a figment of his imagination, but he was sure he saw wings in the shadows. Not from some bird either as they were huge, like they were coming out of a person's back.

"He's your grandson, are you really going to testify against him?" Dean growled angrily.

"I love Matt, but what he did was wrong. I love Will just as much as I do Matt and I want to beat the hell out of him for this." Herbert said as his own anger began to rise. "Matt will pay for what he's done, God have mercy on his soul."

"Thank you Herbert." Susan sniffed though she was still crying. "Please if you see her please tell her to come home. Tell her I love her and to please come home."

"I will Susan." Herbert sighed as he left the two on the couch holding each other. He knew that they were going to call the police and he couldn't blame them. He was going to do it himself, but knew that Susan and Dean needed to do this. Only thing that Herbert cared about right now was Will and if she was ok.

* * *

Irma was a little mad that Will didn't show up since they were supposed to hang out this morning. Despite Cornelia's bitching and the general consensus that it was possible that Will did something to the heart that caused their current lack of powers. Of course most of them believed that it was either an accident or maybe not even of her doing. Still, thanks to Cornelia there was another rift in the group just like the time when Elyon was first taken by Cedric. And once again it was pretty much Cornelia's fault for blowing things completely out of proportion. Despite loving the blonde girl like a sister Irma couldn't help wondering if they wouldn't be better off without her in WITCH. Then again WITH just didn't sound as cool.

"Where do you think Will is?" Hal Lin asked as the group of four girls walked down the street heading towards Will's apartment. They were a little worried about the redhead though Cornelia was having a hard time showing it being her usual self much to the other girls' dismay.

"Like I care." Cornelia huffed angrily.

"Hey girls." Matt called as he hurried toward them from across the road, "Have you seen Will?"

"No, she was supposed to meet us at the Silver Dragon first thing today." Irma said, "We were heading over to her place to check up on her."

"Damn, I was hoping to find her. She left this morning before I got a chance for round two." Matt said smirking sending shivers down all of the girls' spines.

"Round two?" Taranee asked a little confused by what Matt meant.

"Yeah, the little bitch ran out while I was in the bathroom." Matt sneered, "It was very inconsiderate of her."

"How dare you call her a bitch?" growled Irma as she grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Because she is, I enjoyed fucking her brains out last night." Matt said sneering at Irma as he reached up and grabbed her wrists squeezing tightly making her cry out in pain. "You know, I always thought you were pretty hot yourself Irma. Tell me, want me to show you what a real man is?"

"Bastard!" Irma screamed struggling.

"Let her go you creep!" Hay Lin snarled.

"Get away from her Matt!" Taranee yelled picking up a stick and stalking toward him.

"Tell me Irma, do you hate me?" Matt whispered harshly to Irma before shoving her away to trip and land on her ass.

"If you ever come near us or Will again I swear we will kill you!" Cornelia snapped as tears was forming in her eyes. She was beginning to realize what Matt was saying her did. She couldn't believe she was so mad at Will earlier after what she apparently went through last night.

"You know, she was crying, beginning for her mom. She even begged for you sorry excuses for friends to save her." Matt laughed as he turned to leave. "With sorry excuses like you for friends who needs enemies?"

"Bastard!" Irma sobbed as she jumped to her feet ready to pound him into the ground. Taranee and Hay Lin grabbed her trying to keep her back.

"We can't fight him like this, Irma, let's just go get your dad." Cornelia hissed as they watched Matt walk away from them.

"Ta ta girls." Matt laughed as he turned a corner heading away from them.

"Do you really think he would do that?" Hay Lin asked softly afraid of the answer. They were all afraid of the answer.

* * *

Dinner was actually kind of nice and the little tour of the surrounding area at least distracted Will for a little while, but it was getting dark which meant that she would have to find a place to sleep soon. She also needed to decide what to do and where to go, but the more she thought about it the more she tried to figure out a reason to go anywhere. No one would be looking for her here, if they bothered to look at all, so why not stay there? Danny was willing to show her how to survive in her new life as a homeless person and Will realized that was what she was now.

Being homeless was a lot different than what she thought it would be. The people that she met so far were all nice to her and none of them was drunks or druggies. Well there was that one older man who was drinking, but Danny said he wasn't a drunk. Today was the anniversary of his wife's death and he was drowning his sorrows. While Will didn't agree with the method she could at least understand.

"Come on Red, we're almost home." Danny said.

"I thought you were homeless." Will said a little confused at the statement.

"I am, but I do have a place I sleep, where we will sleep. It provides some protection, but it isn't perfect." Danny explained. Will continued following the blonde until they came to a small closed down gas station which pumps was removed and windows boarded up. Following Danny to the back Will saw the girl push a board out of the way letting them into a small office inside. It was the only room that Will could see that was carpeted, but she could feel the chill air seeping through the cracks in the walls and along the boarded up windows. "Welcome to my castle, princess, make yourself at home."

"Thanks Danny." Will said, actually meaning it. It wasn't perfect, but Will could see that Danny was proud of it and she was glad to not have to sleep outside again. This would at least protect them from rain if it happened to storm again.

"Don't mention it, Red." Danny said walking over to a corner that had a single thin blanket. Dropping to the floor Danny stretched out while pulling the blanket over her. With sigh Will went to another corner and laid down though she didn't have anything to cover up with.

"Why are we going to bed so early?" Will asked curiously.

"Because it is getting dark, Red. We don't have lights in here and we don't exactly have anything else to do." Danny explained. "Besides, it is best to get up early to get a good spot in line if you want breakfast."

"We can get breakfast to?" Will asked.

"Of course, Red." Danny explained, "Depending on what day of the week it is we go to different churches and soup kitchens. Normally we can get breakfast and dinner, but lunch is something that we normally won't get."

Will sighed as she curled up, the chill air of the encroaching night starting to get to her. She was beginning to wish that she brought a blanket with her. When an arm circled her waist she couldn't stop from crying out in fear.

"Shhhh, Red, it's just me." Danny whispered trying to calm Will down. Will felt Danny spooning her from behind pulling the blanket over the two of them. The blonde was a little closer than she liked at the moment, but the warmth that she was providing was helping calm he down.

"What are you doing?" Will whimpered.

"It's cold Red, this is my only blanket but, we can share it and share body heat. I can see you shaking." Danny explained kissing the back of Will's head.

* * *

Days quickly turned into a week and Matt was arrested in suspicion of Will's disappearance. Of course his mother refused to believe it even with the proof and bailed the boy out. Herbert was pissed off while the whole Olsen family was falling apart which caused Herbert to move into a small room in his pet shop just to get away from them.

He visited Susan daily checking up on her and Dean, and while at first they was upset with him they warmed up to him after his statement to the police. His own son was torn between his wife and Herbert and in the end sided with his wife making Herbert the only Olsen that Susan even talked to. Now though he was drowning his sorrows, to him he lost both a grandson with the boys stupidity and a granddaughter all thanks to the boy and what he did.

Matt, as soon as he was out on bond made sure to stop by the pet shop to let Herbert know just what he thought. It was that moment that Herbert realized that he lost his grandson as the boy changed completely from what he knew. The lawyers was claiming temporary insanity saying that the boy developed a dual personality which was bullshit. It was just a ploy to try and get him off the hook.

Sighing the old man poured himself another drink from the bottle of Jack Daniels he had before him on the counter. He didn't look up when he heard someone enter the store since he already knew who he was.

"Drinking won't solve your problems." Yan Lin sighed as she took the bottle and took a long swig straight from it.

"Then why are you drinking it?" Herbert asked reaching for the bottle that the woman kept out of his reach. She was an annoying old bat who had no right to steal his liquor, or his heart. In the course of the last few days the only thing that had been good was spending more time with Hay Lin's grandmother. She irritated Herbert bfeyond belief while at the same time making him feel things for someone that he hadn't felt for years. Not since his beloved wife passed away from a battle with cancer.

"Because granny can holdf her liquor a lot better than you." Yan Lin said before letting out a small burp. "Excuse me."

"Your not excused." Herbert said with a small smile. Damn the woman and her uncanny ability to make him smile. "Have you heard anything from Will?"

"I'm afraid not." Yan Lin sighed as her mood darkened just a bit. If only she could contact Candracar or even go there, but something was blocking all of her attempts. She knew that Will didn't have anything to do with it, but Cornelia wouldn't listen and the others wondered if the redhead did, but by an accident of some sort. "I refuse to believe that she is dead, but I'm scared that she is hurt somewhere."

"I can't believe it, she meant so much to me." Herbert sighed.

"She meant a lot to a lot of people and I doubt she knew it." Yan Lin said sitting down on the opposite side of the counter on a stool that was there. It was true sadly, the young girl had so much responsibility dumped on her shoulders and though she was thanked a few times such as when Phobos was finally defeated she couldn't think any other times. To make matters worse, the people who thanked her was the people from Meridian. As far as Yan Lin knew none of the girls thanked her and Cornelia seemed to have a knack for putting everything the girl did down. Yan Lin knew Cornelia cared for Will deep down, but the blonde's jealousy and snobbish attitude instilled into the girl by her parents made it hard for Cornelia to freely show her feelings.

"She will cfome back, we have to have faith in her." Herbert sighed as he reached down into the bottom of the counter pulling out another bottle of Jack Daniels.

"How many of those things do you have?" Yan Lin asked while glaring at Herbert.

"More than you can drink woman." Herbert said with a pompous smirk.

"We'll see about that." Yan Lin said reaching for the bottle that Herbert kept out of reach.

* * *

The week had been hard for Will, but so far she had made it with Danny's help. If it wasn't for the blonde Will knew that she wouldn't have stayed in town or probably made it this long. She hadn't really met any bad people, at least until now.

"Come on babe, I'll double what I paid you last time." Some guy said holding out a handful of cash toward Danny, "Bring your friend too and I'll even pay triple."

"How many times do I have to tell you no?" Danny snarled while slapping the hand away from her making the man a little angry.

"You're nothing, but a damned whore, what gives you the right to talk down to me?" The man said running his hand through his short, greasy hair. He had on a leather jacket over a muscle short and jeans.

"She isn't a whore so why don't you just leave us alone!" Will snapped making the man turn his gaze on her making her shiver. So far she had several panic attacks, but Danny had been helping her learn to cope with them and control them, just another thing Will owed her for.

"You know what? I don't need you!" The man snapped as he turned to get back into his car, stopping only long enough to shoot over his shoulder, "I'd probably get some kind of disease anyway."

"Good riddance." Will sighed as Danny walked away and down a close alley to drop to the ground leaning back against the wall.

"Guess you hate me now." Danny sighed as Will joined her on the ground, their shoulders touching.

"No, but I would like to know what that was about." Will sighed.

"I'm not a whore, Will. If that is what your thinking then I'm sorry, but I'm not." Danny said, her voice quavering a bi as she spoke. Will reached an arm around the girl pulling her closer resting the blonde's head on her shoulder.

"I don't think you are Danny." Will said, "What ever happened in the past doesn't change the fact that you are the only person I have in my life that gives a damn about me."

"Thanks Will." Danny said with a smile, "I do owe you an explanation though. It was about a month ago when the churches ran out of donations and out of food. Normally I can make it, but there was this mother and a small girl who was evicted from their apartment. The pickings were bare in the dumpsters and the girl was so hungry Will, they both haven't eaten in days and the girl was starting to get sick."

"So you slept with that guy for money to buy them food?" Will guessed, her voice soft, but understanding.

"Yeah, I don't regret helping them out Red, but I hate how I had to do it." Danny sighed sadly. "As I said sometimes you will have to do things you regret or hate yourself for. I hated it so much, I don't even like guys like that, but I couldn't see that kid suffer anymore."

"What do you mean you don't like guys like that?" Will asked gently, part of her afraid of the answer.

"I'm gay Will, a lesbian." Danny sighed. "My dad didn't like that very much, so he decided to break me of it."

"Danny, you don't have to tell me." Will said softly as the blonde started to cry a little. Will was shocked at that, the blonde was always so strong, but now she needed a shoulder to lean on reversing the roles for the two. Will held her and readjusted their position so the blonde could cry into her shoulder as Will rubbed her back comfortingly.

"I hate him so much Will." Danny sobbed as Will held her. "Please Will don't leave me now that you know."

"I'm not going anywhere." Will whispered gently lifting Danny's chin so they were looking eye to eye. "I don't know where the winds will carry us and honestly I'm scared, but we will face what comes our way together."

"You mean it?" Danny sniffed.

"Yeah, I do." Will said smiling. She was surprised at herself when she didn't feel sickened or grossed out by the girls admittance of being a lesbian. What she did next surprised her even more as she leaned forward to gently brush her lips against Danny's. "I'm not ready for anything after what Matt did to me, but if you are willing to wait for me then we can see where things go for us."

"I'd like that." Danny said as she leaned back into Will's embrace.

The weeks quickly turned into a mofnth and then two as the two grew closer and closer together. Will was beginning to open up more and they even made out a few times, the two kissing and doing a little heavy petting, but it would cause the redhead to go into a panic attack forcing them to stop. Will didn't really want to do more yet anyways which Danny completely understood and never made Will felt pressured into anything. They still slept cuddled together under their blanket though it was normally more of a lover's embrace now than two friends trying to keep warm.

The few people who knew them best were happy for the two despite a few not exactly agreeing with the whole girl being with girl thing. It was something Will herself couldn't believe, but Danny made her feel loved, made her feel special without any strings attached. All the blonde ever asked for was for Will to be happy and she was starting to be really pleased with the girl.

They were heading back to their little sanctuary later than they usually would. They stayed out in the park watching the sunset, Danny cradling Will's head in her lap playing with the girl's red hair. It turned into much more as Will sat up surprising the blonde when she leaned in kissing Danny deeply.

"I love you." Will whispered pulling back though she rested her forehead against Danny's. It was the first time the redhead had said it, but it brought a few tears to the blonde's eyes.

"I love you too." Danny said, smiling through the tears as she took a ring off her finger and took the redhead's hand slipping it on Will's finger. Will captured her lips again, leaning Danny back onto the ground. Will's lips crashed into Danny's, her tongue licking across the girl's asking for entrance into her mouth. Will was surprised at herself, but she really loved Danny and wanted to show her just how much the girl meant to her.

Danny's hand caressed Wills back as their tongues danced together, their bodies intertwined as one of Will's hands found it's way to the blonde's chest. Cupping one of the girl's breasts Will gave it a gentle squeeze, caressing it bringing a moan from the girl. Will was trying her best to keep the little bit of fear trying to creep up crushed down.

"Come on baby, let's go home." Danny said, sounding as if she was out of breath after the two finally came up for air.

"Okay." Will said before giving the blonde one last kiss before helping her up. She was nervous and scared over what may happen when they got home, but she was determined to see whatever happened through.

They were halfway there walking through a dark alley when two shadows started following them. Danny took Will's hand that the redhead clutched back, both of them breathing heavily as fear started filling them a bit. They picked up their pace hoping it was just a coincidence, that they were just heading the same way. They weren't though as they picked up their pace to not only match theirs, but to overtake them. As they were getting to the end of the alley two more figures stepped out in front of them making them stop.

"What do you want?" Danny asked as the figures grew closer. Seeing their faces made Danny shiver and Will to gasp. Their faces were horrifying to say the least. Their heads had large ridges running across their foreheads, their eyes empty of any emotion or spark of life and they had fangs. The first thought that crossed Will's mind as she pulled out the heart was Meridian.

"Guardian's unite!" Will cried out thrusting the heart out in front of her. She wanted to cry when nothing happened and the four figures roughly yanked them apart. Will was able to struggle free though she fell to the ground looking up to one of the men sink his fangs into Danny's neck into her throat. Will let out a loud scream trying to get up to help the blonde girl, screaming her name begging anyone who would listen for the girl to be okay.

A hand wearing a black glove encased in green fire shot through the chest of one of the monsters before it burst into ashes revealing a pale skinned woman with black hair and wearing a green and black checkered cat suit snarling.

"Get away from her!" The woman snarled swiping her fire encased hand like a claw slashing across the other thing holding the blonde making it burst into ashes next letting the blonde drop to the ground as blood began pooling around her. The woman jumped toward the other two, but Will didn't care, all she cared about was getting to Danny who was gurgling and making strained choking sounds.

Tears flowing down her face Will crawled over to the girl that she just admitted to loving. It wasn't fair, she just told the blonde how she felt and now Danny was dying and Will had no idea what to do.

"Please don't die." Will sobbed uncaring that she was getting blood all over her clothes as she bent over Danny as her breathing stopped. An anguished cry escaped Will's lips as she cradled the lifeless girl's body in her arms.

"I'm so sorry." The woman said coming back, her voice holding sympathy and nervousness. Looking up Will saw her rubbing her shoulder with her hand uncomfortably.

"Help her, please." Will begged, the last light in her life leaving her.

"I'm sorry kid, there's nothing I can do." The woman sighed sadly.


	3. Chapter 3

A Guardian's Homecoming  
A fanfiction story by W. Vandom

* * *

Sirens...

Lights...

The strange woman disappearing...

Shouting and people rushing about...

None of it mattered to Will, not even the people trying to talk to her in order to gain her attention. Nothing could get Will's attention from the girl's body that was cradled in her arms. All she knew was Danny was dead and there was nothing she could do. The last light in her life was now gone.

She barely registered the people around her, their voices sounding as if they were miles away. When they tried to take the blond girl away, they did get Will's attention. She wasn't exactly in her right mind so she fought them, trying to keep them away from Danny. She wouldn't let them take the girl away from her, she wouldn't let them hurt her anymore. The last thing she knew was people she didn't know, people she couldn't even see clearly due to her teary eyes blurring her vision, were restraining her until a sharp pain and nothingness.

Groaning, Will opened her eyes, blinking a few times as her sight slowly came back into focus. There was sterile white everywhere and a low, rhythmic beeping. Trying to sit up caused her to wince in pain as she realized that she couldn't move. It wasn't that she was paralyzed, it was something holding her down in the bed. She could feel straps running across her wrists, ankles, and body in several places.

"Relax young lady, or you might hurt yourself." A voice said from the side of the bed. Craning her neck she could see a nurse with short red hair holding a clipboard and checking the machines.

"Wh-where am I?" Will asked, her voice hoarse and throat dry as she talked.

"You are in Lowerton's Medcentral Hospital." The nurse said, "You were found in an alley..."

"Danny! Where's Danny?" Will demanded as some memories began flooding back, memories that she didn't want to believe. She couldn't really be dead, Danny just couldn't be, could she?

"Your friend?" The nurse asked sadly as she turned from the machines to face the redhead. "I'm sorry sweetie, but your friend didn't make it."

"What happened?" Will sobbed as the nurse came over and gently brushed her hair in an attempt to comfort the her.

"We don't know, we was hoping that you could tell us." The nurse said, "There's an officer outside who wants to talk to you."

"Can you at least take these straps off me?" Will cried, she didn't want to be there and she didn't want to talk to anyone. All she wanted was Danny, and if she couldn't be with the blond, then Will wanted to be alone.

"I'm afraid not, you attacked the officers that was trying to help you." The nurse said softly while shaking her head, "You're here mostly for mental evaluation."

"You think I'm crazy?" Will asked as she stared at the nurse with wide eyes. She wasn't crazy, she was upset! How the hell could they think she was crazy?

"The doctor will be in shortly honey, then the police want to ask you some questions. The doctor might let your out of your restraints if you're good, so please don't cause any trouble." The nurse said as she left. Will was angry, hurt and felt so alone, but she wasn't crazy. How could they be doing this to her? Did they call her mother? She was praying they didn't.

"Hello Will." A familiar voice said from the foot of the bed. Looking up Will saw Kadma wearing a business suit and skirt looking down at her.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were on Zamballa." Will groaned, she really didn't want to deal with the new guardians, much less the old ones.

"No Will, the Kadma you mostly know is my Astral Drop. Except for a few trips there for diplomatic purposes, I stay here on Earth." Kadma explained, "Care to tell me how you ended up here? All I know is what I read in police reports."

"If you're here to try and talk me into going home then you can just leave." Will growled out. She would rather die than go back to those people, if she didn't have Danny then she didn't have any reason to live anyways. She had no family, no friends, and no hope for the future.

"I'm not sending you back to them, in fact I can offer you a new life where they can't find you." Kadma explained making Will wonder if the woman read her mind, but without her powers how could she? "That is easy to explain child, you rely on that pathetic sanctuary for uptight, useless relics. There are other sources that you can draw upon for power, sources that won't try and use you for their own ends and throw you away once finished with you."

"So you are against Candracar?" Will asked angrily. What was this woman doing? Did she actually think Will would willingly go against Candracar. True she was upset with them, but she wasn't stupid.

"Don't be silly child." Kadma laughed as she sat on the side of the bed. "I couldn't care less about Candracar, what I care about is Earth, and stopping those things that attacked you."

"You know what they were?" Will asked, her voice taking on a cold tone.

"They were genetically engineered vampires created by someone for reasons we aren't sure of. All we know is that they are dangerous and have already killed more people that we would care to admit. We need all the help we can get fighting them, and I would like you to join us. You have a lot of untapped potential Will, and we can help you bring it out."

"You keep saying we, who the hell is we?" Will asked, closing her eyes tightly. Was Kadma really trying to get her to help fight these things? Sure, she did just a great job fighting them and saving her only friend in the world from being killed.

"We are a new group that was created by the government to fight these things and find out what is going on. We have connections all over the world, as well as on other worlds." Kadma explained, "We are called GF-13, but some of the members call ourselves Guardian Force."

"What does the GF really stand for?" Will asked before she caught herself. Despite telling herself that she didn't care, Will was a little curious. She wanted to laugh at the name, but she hurt too much to actually laugh. Her heart felt like it was shattered into a million pieces.

"It stands for Global Freedom and the thirteen stands for the thirteen countries we are allied with. We have permission from those governments to operate inside their borders since the threat is worldwide." Kadma explained as she started undoing Will's restraints. "I'm going to get you out of here, but then it will be your decision if you want to come with me or not."

"You said you can give me a new life if I go with you?" Will asked, "You can change my name?"

"Yes Will, to anything you want." Kadma agreed as she unhooked the IV as Will sat up.

"Should you be doing that?" Will asked as she looked at the little bit of blood on her arm where the IV was removed.

"Honestly? No, I'm not." Kadma said, "Most of what we do is classified at the moment so take my hand."

"What for?" Will asked as she hesitantly took Kadma's hand.

"Now Laura." Kadma said just before Will experienced a bad dizzy spell, her vision exploding in bright lights. As her vision cleared she was standing in her hospital gown, her legs shaky. Looking around she was in a small space, long, but skinny with racks of either realistic looking toy weapons or they enough real firepower to man a small army.

"Welcome back, Ma'am." A girl about Will's age said from a computer terminal off to the side. She had pale skin, black hair with pink stripes. She was wearing a black goth-lolita looking outfit with pink highlights and a short skirt.

"Thanks for the quick retrieval Laura," Kadma said with a nod. "Has Shego returned yet?"

"She's in the cab." Laura said with a bright smile showing of two elongated canines. Looking at the teeth that looked more like fangs made a shiver run up her back.

"Very well, Laura, this is Wilhelmina Vandom." Kadma said introducing the two, "Please call her Will. And Will, meet my good friend's daughter Draculaura, or Laura as she prefers around most humans."

"Ummm, sure." Will replied while nervously shaking the girl's hand. Around most human? What the hell did that mean?

"Will you please wait up front with Shego while I talk with our guest?" Kadma asked as she went to a small cabinet and pulled out some clothing and handed it to Will.

"Of course, Ma'am." Laura said before heading away from the two as Will nervously took the seat. She didn't know what was going on, but she didn't like it. She was thankful for the change of clothing, though she didn't see anywhere to change.

"I'm sorry that we don't have a bathroom on the transport so you will have to change here." Kadma said making Will blush. If what Kadma said was true, then she didn't really know this woman yet this same woman was asking her to change in front of her. Kadma rolled her eyes before turning around. "Don't worry, I won't watch."

"Do you think you can stay the hell out of my head for two minutes?" Will asked angrily as she tore the gown off. Thankfully the change of clothes fit, even if they were a little large on her frame. The underwear was surprisingly the exact size she needed. The jeans, red tee-shirt and black jacket with red highlights and stripes going down the sleeves were what was a little large. The combat boots was pretty much a good fit if a little heavier than she was used to.

"I'm sorry Will, but you are broadcasting your thoughts so much it is hard not to overhear your thoughts." Kadma explained as Will dressed. Once done Kadma took a seat at a small booth waving toward the other side signaling for Will to sit down. After hesitating a few moments trying to decide what to do before she took the invitation with an annoyed sounding sigh.

"What do you really want with me?" Will asked softly, "I don't have any powers, Candracar took them away."

"Yes they took them away, but they will return within a few months. The only reason I know about it is because despite my suggestions I was sent to try and make a treaty with them. We need all the help we can get Will, but Candracar refused. If it doesn't threaten them in some way then Candracar won't get involved." Kadma said as she steepled her fingers, looking at Will with a serious expression over them. "And before you ask, Meridian threatened Candracar. Phobos was a threat to them and Candracar sealed him there while letting the people there suffer. It was easier to leave him there than using there power to bring him to justice themselves."

"That's interesting and all, but what does that have to do with our powers?" Will asked while growing a little angry. If not for whatever happened, then Will could have protected herself from Matt.

"Will, do you honestly think that Meridian was the only place with a veil placed over it? There is another world with another tyrant, there will always be. The planets are currently aligned in such a way that it blocks Candracar's power from easily reaching Earth. At the same time, Candracar is also having problems powering the veil because of the planetary alignment. They had a choice to either weaken it's veil to supply the guardian's with their power, or withdraw all of their power to strengthen the veil."

"Why didn't they inform us?" Will asked, her emotions wavering between anger and wanting to cry. It really was their fault that she was left defenseless, that all of them lost their powers. It wasn't anything she did and yet she got the blame for it.

"Because Will, Candracrar doesn't give a damn about you. Besides a few people there, nobody truly cares and the ones who do can't overrule the council." Kadma explained, her voice taking on a sad tone. "It was those bastards who caused the whole Nerissa thing."

"What am I supposed to do?" Will asked rubbing her eyes, a part of her wishing Danny was there to hold her.

"We will teach you to fight Will, unlike what Candracar did to both you and me. We don't ask inexperienced, innocent children to fight on our behalf without giving them any real instructions. In fact we don't ask children at all except for a very few. We will teach you everything you need to know, from fighting with your fists to using weapons. We will also show you how to access alternate power sources so you can access your powers without drawing from the Heart or Candracar."

"I...I don't want to access my powers. I don't even want to fight anymore." Will sighed as she got up and stumbled away. She didn't want to fight anymore, not after all that she had already done just to end up in the position she was in. She didn't even have a reason to fight anymore, much less live.

"Will, I really don't expect you to make a decision right now, but I don't want you to go back to the street." Kadma sighed, "We have a suite here, why don't you take one of the rooms?"

"I can take care of myself, now how do I get out of here?" Will asked trying to hold it together. The more she thought about Kadma's offer, the more she realized that she truly didn't have a reason to fight. She had no one who cared for her and no one to protect. She was physically and mentally tired of everything, of the fighting and the living.

"If that is your choice." Kadma said pushing a button on the wall. A hole started appearing at the end of the somewhat narrow room making Will realize it was a ramp. Turning away from Kadma Will walked down it before turning back to see a futuristic looking truck. It wasn't exactly a semi trailer rig, but it was close. "We will be here for one week Will, if you change your mind then you can come back."

"Don't worry, I won't." Will said as she walked away from the truck.

* * *

There was no funeral since Danny had no family that could be found who would claim her, so they buried her out in the designated area of the graveyard with a small marker planning to be placed. It wasn't anything fancy, just something cheap that the city provided for those unable to pay. No one came though, except for Will who brought some flowers she found still alive despite the increasing cold. She was laying on the ground next to the fresh dirt of the grave, the flowers placed on top of the dirt.

She cried until she couldn't shed another tear, not sure what she should do now that her light was gone. All she saw in her life and future was a darkness with no where for her to go or turn to. She knew that she could always accept Kadma's offer, but for what reason? She didn't want to go on living without Danny.

She closed her eyes as she played with the ring on her finger, thinking about the time she spent with the blonde. Danny had done so much for her and because of her weakness she couldn't even help her when it was truly needed. If only she was stronger then maybe she could have saved Danny, or done something more to keep the girl alive long enough for paramedics. Instead Will failed the blond.

After what felt like hours she was ran off from the cemetery as darkness once again began to fall over the city. It had been four days since Danny's death and Will didn't know what to do anymore, was it even worth living anymore. If she just killed herself maybe she could be with Danny on the other side and be rid of all the pain she felt.

"Welcome back." Shego said from the corner of Will's sanctuary as the woman sat on the floor leaning against the wall. It was growing dark, but there was still enough light to see inside.

"What are you doing here?" Will demanded while sending a hateful glare to the woman. How dare she come into Danny and her sanctuary? "Who are you?

"I'm Kadma's friend, Shego, and I brought you this." Shego said as she climbed to her feet and handed a small square piece of paper to Will. Taking it, Will squinted in the growing darkness, but was able to make out what was on it. It was a small picture of Danny, maybe wallet sized.

"Wh-Where did you get this?" Will asked as new tears came as she hugged the picture to her chest.

"I lifted it from that clinic not far from here." Shego said with a smirk, "It had absolutely no security."

"Thank you." Will whispered, she didn't care that it was stolen as it was a reminder of the blond who made Will's life worth living once more.

"You know kid, she wouldn't want you moping around like this." Shego sighed as the woman moved closer to Will.

"What do you know, have you ever lost anyone like this?" Will demanded, but regretted it when she heard the sad sigh.

"I had four brothers kid, thanks to these things I now only have two." Shego said, her voice quavering a little. "I might not get along with them, but I love them. The twins though, they never judged me like the others and we kept in touch. These freaks killed them and I swear I will make the bastards who are behind it pay!"

"I seen you fight, your strong." Will said, "How can I get revenge for Danny, I'm a worthless nobody!"

"You aren't worthless, kid." Shego said pulling Will into a comforting hug. "Red, Danny would want you to go on, not mope around here forever."

"Don't call me Red, only Danny was allowed to call me that!" Will tried to snap out, but it came out as a sob. Will started sobbing into the woman's arms and allowed herself to be lowered to the ground with the woman. She cried as the woman cradled her head and stroked her back.

"Kid, don't fight for what someone tells you to fight for. Don't even fight for those people you don't know. What you should fight for is something you will have to discover, but you can fight for the one you love. To honor her memory and get payback for her." Shego whispered. "I'm not fighting for some cause like protecting humanity or some other bullshit. I'm fighting for the people I love, to keep anymore of them from being hurt. I'm fighting to keep my little brothers deaths from being in vain. I'm fighting so my little princess don't have to, she shouldn't have to face the pain that I have."

"Does the pain ever go away?" Will asked softly, hiccupping as she tried to get herself under control.

"Not entirely, no, but it does get better." Shego said. "Look kid, I don't want to pressure you into joining us. I'm not going to lie, it can be a bitch working with us, but it can have it's own rewards. You can make real friends if you want. You can become whoever you want."

"I want...I want to taker her last name." Will whispered, "I know we only knew each other for a month, but...I loved her so much."

"Shhh, it will be okay kid." Shego whispered as Will broke down again, the woman stroking her hair. "If that is what you want I'll make sure that it happens."

"I still don't know if I want to join, but I can't stay here." Will said after crying herself out in the woman's arms. She pulled away and climbed to her feet as the woman did the same. She truly didn't know much about this woman or what was going on, but she figured that the only way to get real answers was by going along. Maybe once she got her answers then she could possibly make sure the bastards behind the attack on Danny would pay.

"I want to grab a few things first." Will sighed as she went to pick up the blanket that Danny and Will shared.

"You know, you get paid a lot so you can afford a new blanket." Shego said.

"It was our blanket." Will whispered softly, though she was sure Shego heard.

"Oh..." Shego sighed, understanding showing in the simple word.

Will went about grabbing her pack, she wished that she had something else to take that would help her remember Danny, but thanks to Shego she now she had a picture as well as the blanket and ring. She didn't have much in her pack, but she did have a few pictures she took with her from home. She wasn't sure why she took them when she left, but they were all she had of her old life. If Kadma was right then that life would be completely over soon and she would be facing a new one. She just prayed that she would be strong enough so she could avenge the blonde haired girl.

"I'm ready." Will sighed as stuffed the blanket in her pack and turned to leave. Wordlessly Shego led the way out of the building and through the streets until the truck that Will was in before was in sight.

"Shego, why did we walk?" Will asked, curious as to why they just didn't teleport like Kadma had done.

"First, they didn't know I came to talk to you." Shego replied, "And second, it takes a lot of power to use the teleporter. Only reason Kadma did was because we couldn't leave you there to answer a bunch of questions. They would have thrown the key away and left you there if you told them what happened."

"Can I really change my name?" Will asked nervously, as they came up to the truck.

"Yeah, Laura may not look it, but she's an ace hacker. She can do the first steps now if you want and we can get you legal documentation later. Social security cards, birth certificates, the works." Shego said as she hit the side of the truck a few times.

"It's about time you got back." Came Kadma's voice from inside as the ramp lowered.

"Yeah, yeah, you old bat." Shego said, her voice taking on a slight mocking tone as she addressed Kadma. "And lookie what I brought with me. Can I keep her?"

"Will!" Kadma said in shock as the two walked up the ramp.

"I decided to at least give this a try." Will said as she dropped her bag onto the floor.

"Hey Laura, the kid here wants you to go ahead and start creating her new identity. Says she wants to take the blond girl's last name." Shego said as she sprawled out on a long chest looking thing, but she looked comfortable on it.

"On it." Laura said coming from the front and dropping down at the computer terminal.

"Have a seat Will." Kadma said as she dropped a bag of fast food on the table with a drink carrier and several drinks. "Dig in, we already ate and Shego looks like she's out like a light."

"I don't want to take her food." Will said, though her stomach was growling. The food smelled wonderful after so long of not having anything like this. The food at the churches and food kitchens were good, if a little bland, but this aroma was making her mouth water.

"Nonsense, our meals are paid for so she can get more when she wakes up." Kadma said as Will opened the bag and pulled out a couple sandwiches and fries.

"Kadma, what all is expected of us? What do we do?" Will asked as she took a bite of the sandwich, almost moaning in pleasure at how good it tasted.

"Well, we have made deals with real vampires, several other species that humans consider monsters, and several species of alien. With their help we are developing weapons and training people with a high potential to fight the rouge elements that have been showing up and becoming more and more bold." Kadma explained, "We are sure there is something behind everything, but none of our contacts know who or what is going on. They have been showing more and more coordination lately, only going after strong people who could become our allies and killing them. We even have some reports of people with dark energies being corrupted and controlled by their darker sides."

"Does that mean they are going to attack the girls?" Will asked, a little worry creeping up at the thought despite what they did to her.

"Doubtful, they most likely reported how you didn't have powers before Shego killed them." Kadma said making Will relax a bit.

"Congratulations, Mrs. Wilhelmina Stark, wife of Danielle Stark." Laura said grinning as she walked up to the table with her hands behind her back. The sandwich fell out of Will's hand and onto the table as she slowly sank into shock.

"Wh-What?" Will asked after opening and closing her mouth several times trying to formulate a response.


	4. Chapter 4

A Guardian's Homecoming

A fanfiction story by W. Vandom

Beta Read by MagicalGirl23

* * *

I admit this is kind of a filler chapter, something to bridge the gap between years and explain a little about what is happening. Starting next chapter though Will, she will get her first assignment and it won't be something she is pleased with, in fact she might be kind of pissed over it.

Thank you MagicalGirl23 for all the great work you do on beta reading my stories and everything you've added, fixed or repaired as it's done a lot to make this a lot better.

* * *

Irma couldn't believe that it had been six months already since Will disappeared. She knew the reasons behind it, who in their right mind wouldn't be hurting after something like that, happened to you? Irma was upset enough after what Matt did to her just a couple weeks ago and it was nothing like what happened to Will.

For some reason Matt had turned against them, and though Taranee and Cornelia believed it wasn't him, Irma wasn't buying it. He was using his Shagon form just to play with them after they regained their powers. Yan Lin had even taught them how to channel their aurameres directly and draw their power out through some pendants which had been given to them. They were just as strong as when Will transformed them, but unfortunately unlike then, they could only stay changed for a short period of time.

The Oracle who was apparently the leader of Candracar could normally track the guardians whereabouts, but every time he tried with Will something blocked him and lashed out with such viciousness it caused him to pass out. Irma really didn't care if he felt pain, in fact she secretly laughed on the inside every time he felt that pain. It wasn't anything like what Will must have felt, but if the greedy cowards didn't strip their powers temporarily without warning then what happened to Will may not have happened.

_Irma could somewhat identify with what happened to Will though due to their last showdown, and it was no were as bad as what happened to the redhead. The other guardians were hurt and down when Matt in his Shagon form slammed her into the side of a train car since they were at the train yard again. _

_"You know babe, if anyone is as beautiful as Will, then it's you." Matt sneered as he looked down at Irma through that hideous mask of his. He had her arms pinned above her head with one hand as the other was groping her breasts. "Let's see what you look like under that gawky outfit."_

_"Let me go you son of a bitch!" Irma snarled, weak and in pain from being slammed around by the bastard already. _

_"Why Irma, why should I let you go?" Matt sneered as he gripped the neckline of her top and tried to tear it off her body. Irma was relieved when it didn't tear even though she knew it was pissing Matt off greatly. Irma never felt so much relief as he took flight while letting her go. Her relief was short lived when she realized why he had retreated, there were several large chunks of earth flying straight at her._

_"IRMA!" Cornelia shouted, trying to warn the water guardian before it was too late, but it was. She was pelted with chunks of earth and rock not only bruising several ribs, but also giving her a concussion. _

At first Irma was tempted to go to her dad and tell him everything while leaving out the magical parts. She changed her mind though as she remembered the quick trial where Matt was found not guilty. The jury claimed that the picture on the video was too dark, which was total bullshit, and since Will wasn't here to testify they said there was no case. While most people didn't see it, the girls did. No matter who they thought he was, they all knew that Matt had gotten to them and scared them into that verdict. They were all so scared of him while he just smiled that smug smirk.

Now Matt was free, Will was missing, and the girls were at a loss on what to do. They wouldn't ever give up searching for Will. Will was their friend, their sister, and they needed her back. They knew that they messed up, Cornelia more than any of them, and they just wanted to make it up to her. It was impossible though because they had to find her to make it up and they had no clues left to look into. They were at a dead end.

"Irma, it's time to get up!" Anna called making Irma grown in annoyance. She was awake and had been for almost five hours now just thinking about Will. Whatever pain they were feeling, Will's mom had to be feeling a lot worse.

* * *

Susan was glad that Dean had gone to work as she was getting annoyed with her husband. Yes she was in her third trimester, but that didn't mean the man had to smother her. She was pregnant, not crippled. She was able to walk, work, and do things for herself. Of course her work was something she had to do even if she wasn't in the mood, and she wasn't.

She missed over three months of work when Will ran away, but her bosses at Simultech were surprisingly very understanding about the whole matter. That changed over the last month as the company was going through a transition as a new company called Stark Industries bought them out. The new higher-ups in the company insisted that she take it easy since her daughter was missing and she was pregnant.

She didn't want to take it easy; she needed to work for two main reasons. She needed to prove to her new bosses that she was a valuable employee and she needed a distraction. She needed to get her mind off her thoughts of Will, the longer her mind wasn't occupied the more it drifted to the redhead. The more her mind drifted to the redhead the more she realized she screwed up...big time. The more she realized that the more she became depressed and cried. She couldn't allow herself to do that because with that came even darker thoughts and her life wasn't the only one hanging in the balance. She had a baby boy that would die if she did anything stupid and he deserved a chance at life. She did promise herself that she wouldn't make the same mistakes that she made with Will with her son.

Sitting down at the desk, taking a deep sigh as a part of her was wishing Dean was there now helping her some, she turned the power on to the computer. In under a few minutes she was logging on to her work account since they made her work at home and only do what she could until after giving birth.

Opening up an email from their new owner, an Anthony Stark, Susan couldn't help letting her jaw drop to her ankles. He was offering her a new position and a new project to oversee. She would communicate with her team through video chat while she was stuck at home working, assigning only small parts of the project to different groups. What was the most shocking on the offer was the fact that she couldn't see the details until she agreed that she couldn't share details of the project with anyone. And agree she did which brought up blueprints of several futuristic sounding weapons as the programming required for it was stuff she had never seen before. Things she never thought possible, but included was plenty of places to start.

At first she wasn't sure why they would be assigning her this project since it looked complete at first glance. Looking more into the documents she had before led her to the answer rather quickly. Simply there were flaws in the programming, specifically the onboard targeting system and the systems controlling the power output. As is the thing could overload according the specs and seriously hurt the user. The big question on her mind was why would someone need a gun that could shoot concentrated bursts of ultra violet radiation?

Sighing she decided to get to work on the programming until she met the man later at the appointed time in the e-mail. Right now she had plenty of work to do, but she already knew where to start. Screw the software they already had written for the weapon, it would cause the power output to fluxuate too much and the recharge time to take longer than necessary. Another of the problems was the targeting program. Why would anyone install a targeting program like this on a simple handgun? There was some kind of output that could be connected to some kind of targeting retackle, but a simple laser scope would work much better for something like this.

* * *

Anthony Stark, owner of one of the largest corporations in the world, was a busy man. Especially after not only accepting contracts to some newer clan destine government agency that his friend was involved in, but also because of the recent takeover of Simultech that would be a big help for the software development for the equipment he was asked to make.

No matter how busy he was, he made sure to take the time to visit his granddaughter. He loved the girl with all his heart and regretted letting his son take her away from him. He didn't learn until too late about what the monster did to his own daughter or the fact that it drove her onto the street. If he knew sooner he would have been there taking her in, but he didn't. All because he refused to give into his son's demands and give the ungrateful brat money to stay on a constant binge the man punished Anthony by moving away and taking Daniele with him.

Now he had to go visit his granddaughter at a place he never wanted to see her in. The place was so cold and uncaring with all of the grey slabs of stone marking the final resting places of so many people, so many children, it saddened him to go. He replaced the simple marker with what he believed to be a much more fitting memorial for his granddaughter. He made it a point to visit her once a week at the least and every time he went he would find flowers, stuffed animals, and sometimes even boxes of chocolate. He could never figure out who was leaving the items as everything he learned about Danielle was that no one cared for her except for a few homeless people that he tried to help get off the streets.

As the limousine came to a slow stop Anthony knew that they arrived at the graveyard already and sighed. A part of him hated coming here as it was a reminder of his failure to raise a decent son and his failure as a grandfather who should have been there for the girl. Thanking the driver who opened the door for him, Anthony took the bouquet of roses and started his short, yet long journey into the cemetery.

As he came up to the grave he caught sight of a very pretty red haired girl kneeling in front of the grave with the usual ton of flowers spread around. She was wearing a black jacket over what appeared to be a green sweater, a pair of blue jeans and a pair of black heeled bots. He could see the tears falling freely as she looked up at him when he reached her. What drew his attention the most though was the ring on the girl's finger, the same ring he had given his wife oh so long ago.

"Hi." Anthony said, giving the girl a small smile though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Hey." The girl said as she stood up and backed a few steps away from the man.

"So are you the one who has been leaving all of these flowers?" Anthony asked as the girl nodded. "I'm sure she would have loved them."

"Yeah, she was a bit of a tomboy, but she always loved flowers." the girl said as she wiped the tears away from her eyes.

"So you knew her well?" Anthony asked though he believed he already knew the answer. He knew while Danielle was a little bisexual, however overall tended favor the fairer sex and he was sure this girl was probably her lover.

"She...She was my wife." The girl said playing with her ring nervously. "I loved her very much. Can I ask who you are?"

It took Anthony a few moments to recover from the shock, it didn't even look like the girl was eighteen and they were married? If this was some kind of scheme to try and get at his money through Danielle he swore he would make her suffer, child or not. "My name is Anthony Stark."

"You were her grandfather?" The girl said, her face taking on an angry expression...a very angry expression. "You son of a bitch! You abandoned her to that bastard and you have the nerve to show up here?"

That wasn't what he was expecting, he was expecting her to try and kiss his ass. He was sure she was going to try and con a few million out of him. Oh this girl was either very good or was truly very close to Danielle.

"I didn't abandon her, her father moved and took her away." Anthony replied, his voice staying even as he steeled his emotions. He refused to get upset right now; he intended to stay calm until he learned the truth. "I loved Danielle very much."

"She called you; your wife told her in no uncertain terms that you didn't want to have anything to do with trash." The girl growled, it looked like she was going to pounce on him any moment. It took him a few minutes to figure out what the girl was talking about since his wife died years ago from cancer. She gave Danielle her ring right before dying the next day.

"My wife passed away many years ago, and if Danielle talked to who I think she did then I will soon be needing a new secretary." Anthony growled a little, a few cracks beginning to show through his mask as his anger grew at that bigoted bitch. He knew the woman didn't like Danielle because of the blonde's reputation of playing for the other side, but the woman was professional. Anthony would never have dreamed the woman would do something like this but she was the only one who would, or could as she was also his personal assistant.

"She loved you, you know. I admit I didn't know her a long time, but we loved each other and she told me everything. It killed her to think you hated her because of who she was." The girl sniffed.

"The only people I hate is my son...and myself." Anthony sighed, a few tears leaking out despite him fighting against them.

"You really did care, didn't you? You were the one who bought this tombstone for her, aren't you?" The girl asked and all Anthony could do was nod as he recollected himself. "You know, I don't know whether to be mad or glad that you did. I just got a new job right after...I came here to arrange a new one and saw this beautiful one."

It was beautiful to, it had her name and a prayer to guide her spirit to heaven on it as well as calling her beloved granddaughter inscribed on the base. A large, life size angel made completely out of white marble stood atop the base with arms outstretched. The angel herself had a very close resemblance to Danielle herself since Anthony paid to have it made in her likeness. The caretaker wouldn't let Anthony put it there at first but about fifty thousand dollars quickly changed his mind.

"I don't know if I should trust you or not, but for Danny's sake I'll give you the benefit of the doubt." The girl sighed, "My name is Wilhelmina Stark."

"I'm Anthony Stark, but you can call me Tony." Anthony said shaking the girl's hand. "Let me buy you a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, and then maybe we can talk some."

"Make it hot cocoa." Will said as Tony led the girl out of the graveyard.

* * *

Will couldn't believe how fast she had become friends with Anthony Stark, but she had. From that they when they met in the graveyard the old man had become the grandfather Will never knew but always wished she had. They would meet at the least once a week with him, usually either on Saturday or Sunday, and they would spend most of the day together. Will learned so much about Danny's childhood before the families falling out. In exchange the older man learned what Danny was like the last few months of her life.

As months went by Will not only had to finish up High School, but she also had to take up business classes and physical training for when she started taking missions. She should have known that there was some reason behind the business classes, but Kadma had insisted on it. She found her answers to why she needed the classes not long after her nineteenth birthday.

For two weeks Anthony didn't show up or answer her phone calls. She was about to give up on the third week when someone finally did show up, it wasn't the old man. It was his lawyer and he brought with him very grave news. Anthony Stark had died, slipping away peacefully in his sleep. In his will, which he had changed apparently a month after meeting Will, the old man left everything he had to Will. Everything including majority stock in several of his companies and full ownership in others. Kadma knew what Anthony had done and followed his requests making sure she would be able to take over when it was time.

It hurt when he died; it felt like she lost another part of her life. In a way she had, Anthony was the only family she had. True it wasn't by blood, and Will told him the truth about everything after awhile, but he still had loved her like a true granddaughter. He didn't judge her, nor blame her for Danny's death. Anthony accepted her as Danny's wife and his new grand daughter.

Will had inherited billions of dollars thanks to Anthony Stark and she had made use of some of her new personal funds. She returned to Lowerton to not only bail Betty out of financial difficulty. Will bought the clinic and upgraded everything in it as well as financed it, putting Betty in charge of it. From there she went on to help the homeless people there, providing food, shelter and helping many of them return to school to make a career.

Everything she did though she did under the name of W. Stark so no one back at home could track her. In fact she made sure that no pictures ever made it into the newspaper since she had either one of her team do the public stuff for her or had one of her company assistants do it.

All of that was about to change though, she was now twenty years old and was getting her first assignment. It wasn't anything very dangerous she was told and her team that she graduated with wouldn't be needed. In fact only one person would be going with her which was strange, usually at least three people went on missions at the least, but things were changing. Looking up at the camera posted outside of the director's office Will nervously smiled while saluting, "Wilhelmina Stark reporting for duty."


	5. Chapter 5

A Guardian's Homecoming

A fanfiction story by W. Vandom

Beta Read by MagicalGirl23

* * *

Not the best of chapters, and I apologize for that, but I have had to deal with some personal stuff as well as the norm at school and my family life. Everything is pretty much settled so I can start working more on my stories, but it may take a chapter or two to get back into the swing of things and make better quality chapters at a more faster pace than the last few weeks.

Also wanted to thank XV-Dragon and everyone on his forum for their wonderful advice. A lot of great people hang out there so check it out if you want. Speaking of forums, I made my own off site forum (link on my profile) that I will be posting different stuff including raw, un-beta read chapters so you can see the difference between the original and the one that MagicalGirl23 fixes up for me. She does a lot of work and I really appreciate it as she makes everything much better by not only fixing grammar and spelling, but by adding her own touches making for a more descriptive and better read story. Especially for this chapter, she saved it from being a horrible mess and turned it into a great chapter. Thanks a lot MagicalGirl23.

And on a final note, I hope everyone has a happy valentine's day.

* * *

Susan sat in her plush office chair watching out the large bay window of her office over the lovely city of Heatherfield. In just two short days the owner of SS Industries, or Simultech-Stark Industries would be coming for a visit. Rumors had it that the reason he or she was coming was to wipe out the corruption that had done nothing short of infesting the nooks and crannies of the company like vermin over the last few years. In which there were salaries cut as past job titles had been changed and positions completely done away with, some literally overnight. Not even Susan was safe from them even though she kept doing what she had when Anthony Stark was still alive.

Such was the efficient ruthlessness that the unknowns dealt down upon what they considered their vast corporate empire, since Tony Stark had passed that is. As they now began cutting like a diamond honed razor blade into anything and everything that crossed their path before proceeding to root around in the wounds. Then with almost supernatural quickness twisted the innards to suit their own twisted ends, all in the name of the almighty dollar!

Privately, Susan thought of them as nests of roaches clinging in places that usually one would have never thought to look. Scurrying when the light flipped on and pointing the finger at someone else for doing it. And they had been rooted there for as long as she remembered, if not longer it seemed.

Susan gave a small shudder at the disgusting thought, before her thoughts turned wistfully elsewhere. Others were much worse off than she, good and decent people such as Anna Lair. She had been head of the accounting department for just about six months after her husband was shot and paralyzed from the waist down. Tom couldn't do much on the force and his blatant masculine stubbornness of refusing a desk job at the station led to his forced retirement. That which in turn had then forced the long-suffering Anna, who by this time people were coming to admire for her saint-like patience putting with her selfish, childish spouse to go out and find a job herself. If only to get out of the house and get some peace for herself. The man just couldn't realize and be grateful that he wasn't dead and buried, he instead sat at home and skulked about his glory days rather than doing anything useful as he should have done. Instead casually tossed the full financial burden of their struggling household onto his wife's sholders.

Because, in reality, with both the debt from Tom's hospital bills piling up and the false charges against Anna that let the company fire her. Now the company lawyers wouldn't even help her as they were in the true "responsible parties" pocketbooks and had hands in the proverbial cookie jar all around.

Susan was clean though, squeakily so. Her motto was _**"Keep your guard up, your head down and always, **__**always**__** cover your backside." **_And she had worked that backside, her own and kissed enough of others, off and on, for years to keep it that way. While she wanted to help her friend, she had her own family to think of as well. And though Susan had nothing to do with those people and though she tried turning them in anonymously.

Even going so far as sending messages to the owner's assistant with proof of what was going on in desperate hopes of finally getting it taken care of. She didn't have much luck there though, as the strange girl utterly loathed Susan for some reason. The icy-cold look of contempt Laura seemed to give only to her bothered Susan, frightening her in some strange way. It just wasn't _human_, rather almost _animalistic_, looking down her nose at you didn't begin to describe it. It was more akin to a predator leering down at its prey just before the latter's flesh was ripped off the bone, in the most painful way possible. She didn't know what that girl had against her, but it was there and Susan didn't quite understand it. She personally had nothing against the young woman, far from it. In fact, Susan Vandom admired the young woman for what she accomplished.

Laura did seem kind of young to have such a high position, company rumor control whispered behind closed department doors, beside the water cooler, even at the Starbucks on the corner at lunch hour. The only reason the girl had the position was she was either the daughter of the new owner or sharing the owner's bed. Of course beside the little fact, that no one knew for sure if the new owner was male or female that theory didn't hold much credence.

Still, the girl's look wasn't exactly what someone would expect or usually be allowed for that matter, of high ranking personnel in such a large multinational corporation. First look at her the best you could say was she resembled a stylish gothic teeny-bopper, wherever she shopped it definitely wasn't Hot Topic.

Because she looked barely into her twenties and had very light skin that almost seemed to have a dusty rose tint to it. Of course that could have been a trick of the light reflected from as much pink as the girl wore. Her hair was black with pink streaks tied back into twin ponytails. She wore a pink blazer with black sleeves over a black blouse. She wore a pink pencil skirt with slits that went midway between thigh and knees. She wore black stockings and gothic looking boots that went almost to her knees with stiletto heels. The buttons on her blazer were little skulls and her earrings looked like safety pins. She wore a pink heart just below her left eye, but no one knew if it was makeup or a tattoo.

Some of Susan's co-workers called the young girl a vampire because of the pointed canines Laura had when she smiled. Of course that was stupid seeing how she was out in daylight much of the time, though she didn't seem to like it very much. However strangely, she did usually carry a black and pink pin-striped umbrella somewhere on her person if she needed to go out, rain or shine. In Susan's own opinion, the girl was beautiful if a bit charmingly eccentric. Laura was also incredibly intelligent though she hid it under a bubbly exterior which seemed to throw most people off.

She could plough thru a stack of six months worth of paperwork the size of Mount Everest, fire off commands, pleasantries or creative curses to a small army of other staff and interns like a round of bullets on the phone or otherwise. Or using what could only be rip-off Bruce Lee moves flinging the occasional spurned riff-raff that tried to weasel their way to get into the CEO's office across her desk and into security's waiting hands. Then play full-out hostess to distinguished guests of many nationalities and languages to later have them singing praises all the way out the door, or do one of any number of other useful things sometimes in a single afternoon.

All without breaking a sweat.

Heck, Susan figured that even a freak windstorm couldn't ruffle Laura's feathers. Because knowing her she'd emerge from the whole thing like she'd stepped out of a luxury spa, not so much as an eyelash out of place.

In short, she was the Ultimate Chanel Bag of Personal Assistants.

As she flawlessly prepared for the coming of their mutual boss the new CEO of Simultech-Stark Industries. Seeing what she saw, in all honesty Susan could see why the young woman had her position if others didn't. Her wardrobe aside, they probably didn't care what she wore. Laura definitely had done something to earn it and was excellent at keeping it, if push came to shove hers was one job that would always be safe if the new CEO was a smart one. But that was a question that could only be answered with time.

Any way she looked at it though, the young woman was an enigma that for some reason reminded Susan of Will. It had been years since she had seen her daughter and even though the pain had gone down to a dull ache, the scar still throbbed in her heart every day. When her daughter had needed her most Susan had turned her away, made her run away thinking no one cared. She had spent a large amount of her earnings, even when her salary was cut several times, trying to find any trace of Will. The last Susan had heard of Will was in Lowerton where several people had mentioned they had seen her living on the streets. It was all her fault, well she was just as much at fault as that bastard who in the end completely got off scott free. Sure he spent a short period of time in a mental ward, but not even the full amount of time the courts ordered.

Sighing she got up from the chair and turned almost screaming in sheer fright. _'Speak of the Devil and lo he shall appear!'_ She thought, mentally willing her heart to slow its erratic rabbit thumping.

There standing before her was the gothic looking girl she had just been thinking about. She hadn't even heard the girl come in, but none the less she was there nearly boring ocular holes into the older woman.

"Our mutual boss will be coming very soon, and they wanted me to come to you personally. If I had my way you wouldn't even be here still, however they trust you in this matter." Laura said crossing her arms and giving a pointed glare at Susan.

"Who is this boss? What do they want?" Susan asked, a little unsettled by the sudden appearance and the positively demonic way the girl was eying at her.

Laura snorted, indifferently. A strange sound coming from her cute, button nose. "If _they_ _want_ to tell you _they will_ when they come, all you're getting out of me is your assignment." She shook her head clearly exasperated. "For some odd reason, after everything, they still trust you to be honest. Your assignment is to gather reports on EVERYONE in the company here that you trust and who you don't trust. They want to know who is behind as well as taking part in stealing from this company."

Sighing in a resigned fashion, Susan knew she wasn't going to get any straight answers from this girl. She did know that however much the girl disliked her, Laura was fiercely devoted and loyal as a pitbull to whoever the owner was, and if she was here saying she was doing something for the owner, then Susan believed her. Reaching for her purse, Susan pulled out a USB flash drive and handed it to Laura. She loved this company and in memory of her former boss and the man she considered her friend still, Anthony Stark. Susan would do everything she could to protect both its future and her job. She also had an ulterior motive though, she needed it to continue paying those who were still searching for her daughter.

"I already have everything on here, if you really intend to do something about them you can have it." Susan said as Laura snatched the small device from her hand.

"Oh, we plan to do something alright." Laura sneered as she turned and stalked off out of the office leaving an owlishly blinking, utterly confused woman behind.

* * *

Will wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen and heard it with her own eyes and ears as she tried to stay inconspicuously sandwiched between a marble pillar and a rather large potted palm. And failing spectacularly at it, fortunately nobody was paying much attention. In the lobby at one of the non-company owned banks she used, the branch in Heatherfield coincidently. She stopped off momentarily to withdraw enough money to rent the penthouse suite in one of the newer hotels in town since she didn't want to use any of the company owned places. She didn't want people getting pictures of her and putting two and two together until she was ready to go public. She really wasn't expecting to run into anyone she knew, but she spotted Anna Lair in enough time to duck out of sight. Her own red locks being a little bit harder to hide over the years having become a more brilliant shade of crimson with maturity.

It was hard to believe that the once proud woman was actually begging for an extension on her family's mortgage, but the bank was refusing as it had been extended already several times from what Will heard. A distraught Anna left the bank crying softly after being told that she would lose their home in less than a week if it wasn't paid up. Will had and still loved Irma's family, they had always been so kind to her and they didn't deserve this. Taking a deep breath to still her nerves at this unforeseen complication, and resolved to do what she knew was right. Will boldly walked forward to the same counter and demanded to speak to the branch manager in private.

* * *

After finishing up her business at the bank and picking Laura up in a rented town car from a little diner near SS Industries, the two retired to the Hotel and had a few girlish giggles the expense of the shocked front desk clerk looked when they saw how young Will was and how much money she freely spent for the penthouse. Both had to admit the place was beautiful and well worth the money once they arrived.

While Laura relaxed in the massive hot tub in the Master bath, enjoying the quiet time as the two knew there wouldn't be much in the foreseeable future. While Laura was doing that though, Will was tapping away on a new laptop in a room she had claimed as an office nearby busy planning on what she was going to do. Looking through all the information on the flash drive made her angry as she had never known just how bad the company that belonged to her beloved's family, now _her_ company, was sinking ever more rapidly like a lead weight. If it wasn't for this mission she would probably have never known the people truly responsible for all this were operating right under her nose.

Mission parameters were easy and her cover was even better. Laura had received intelligence that people in the company were corrupt and killing it from within for their own selfish reasons. The mission was simple: first to fix things within her company while subtly doing an investigation as to whether or not some of the chips that were recovered from the false vampires had indeed been manufactured from here there since the companies logo was printed on the circuitry. Unlike most missions this was a covert investigation with no expected confrontation so instead of the normal three person cell, only Will and Laura were sent and the reason why was obvious.

Looking over the records and evidence her mother gathered make her stomach churn bitterly, innocent people such as Anna were framed just to take the fall for those who wanted to line their own pockets with a little green. It didn't seem to matter who was hurt as long as several people could make a dollar. Screw waiting several days, she was going to put an end to it first thing in the morning. First though, she had to have Laura make a phone call while she made her own. She had her plans set for what she wanted to do, but she wasn't completely sure she could handle it all on her own. So, like any good businesswoman or warrior for that matter, she knew it was time to outsource for some allies.

This was her first real test both as the owner of SS Industries and as a Guardian.

Sighing she pulled a familiar pendant from beneath her shirt and fingered it thinking of her past and a distant moment in time as a different type of guardian.

* * *

It was actually a beautiful morning out, but to Anna it seemed dull and lifeless as she forced herself out of her beat up old car. She wistfully remembered the days when she used to have a newer one, but was forced to sell it just to pay an ungrateful husband's mounting bills. Then had had to break down and bought this one for a hundred dollars in an attempt to be able to continue to get employment. It hardly ran and was falling apart. The only reason the police didn't bother her is because they knew who she was and the situation her family was in. Her daughter was also on the force, and even though she tried Irma had her own bills and life to worry about. Anna refused to take much money from the younger woman.

Walking up to the security check Anna asked herself why she even bothered coming as SS Industries had already more or less ruined her life. Since she had the reputation of being fired for suspected money laundering and embezzling no one would hire her. She took odd jobs just to make enough to barely pay the bills, including her husband's still astronomical medical costs.

"Good to see you again, Mrs. Lair." Jeff said as Anna arrived at the security check point. He was one of the people she liked at the company when she worked here, one of the ones who to that day still believed in her innocence. "The new boss is here today, earlier than expected."

"The new boss?" Anna asked, a little surprised. She knew there was a new boss though no one knew much about them. Anna wasn't too impressed with them though, anyone who let innocent people like her have their lives ruined were just as bad as the ones who were directly responsible.

"Yeah, no one knows how or when they got in, but they have the entire top floor sealed off with only the head of security allowed there. According to the papers only a Mrs. Hale and yourself are supposed to be escorted up there as soon as you arrived." Jeff explained as he looked over his papers before pulling out a visitors pass and handing it to Anna. "I guess I'll take you up to my supervisor then he'll show you where to go."

"Thank you." Anna sighed as she followed the man through the huge building. She shouldn't have been surprised when the head of security met them and led her up to a hallway where Elizabeth Hale was shifting back and forth on the balls of her feet, waiting impatiently.

"Hey Lizzie, what are you doing here?" Anna asked giving her friend a bright smile, though it was obvious it was mostly forced. Anna had been through so much lately it was just too hard to genuinely smile anymore.

"Don't call me that." Elizabeth sighed, but she knew how hard it had been for Anna lately. Of course the woman tried to help Anna, but Anna hadn't wanted to take it. She wanted to work something out herself, but she was realizing that it wasn't going to happen. Anna had planned on calling Elizabeth later today, but the amount Anna owed was probably way too much for the lawyer to help with. "Anyways, I guess you were the other person we were waiting for?"

Before either of them could say anything else, the large doors they were standing before opened and a familiar girl was standing there stoically holding out a manila folder to each woman. It took a moment for Anna to realize the pink-and-black goth woman was Laura, a girl Anna only ever really met once.

"Good morning Ladies, Thank you for coming on such short notice." Laura said, a slight smile upon her black painted lips though she was acting very professional. "Please come in, but stay in front of the desk."

Anna and Elizabeth looked at the girl then each other for a few moments, questions racing through both women's minds. They quickly followed behind the young woman who walked to stand behind the desk next to a large, high backed office chair that was turned around so all they could see was the leather back.

"Good morning Ladies, please if you haven't already looked at the contents of your folders, please do so now." A cool, feminine voice said from the other side of the chair. It felt kind of weird talking to someone like this, it was as if this was a scene from some bizarre movie. They wouldn't have been surprised if cameras popped out from behind the chair and claimed they were from some new reality show, where they would see how long it would take you to crack under the pressure in front of your boss.

"Are you really the new owner? What's your name?" Anna asked, a little confused at what was going on.

"Yes I am, and I will tell you my name after you look through your folders and sign the contracts if you agree. If you don't agree, you are free to leave and security will escort you out. If you agree and sign the contracts, I will explain everything and answer your questions." The voice said, it also seemed very familiar to Anna for some reason.

Opening up the folder Anna flipped through the pages of the contract reading through it. It forbid her from talking about the owner and who they were with anyone including family members, which struck her as being odd. Apparently the new owner wanted her to review the books and investigate the financial situation of the company and where everything was really going.

Flipping farther into the folder almost made Anna drop it when she came across the mortgage for her home, and whose name it was now officially in. A small smile crossed her lips as she attached a face to the mysterious voice behind the chair. It was older for sure, but it was obviously hers. Looking at the sheet behind it made her eyes go wide, there was a check that was, according to the small note attached, hers if she accepted or not in payment for the time lost since she was framed.

"So you want me to have my firm take over all legal operations for your company until you complete this investigation?" Elizabeth asked curiously, "There are some strange terms in here, but if you are serious I'll accept."

"I'll accept to, but have you let your mother know that you're back?" Anna asked moving slowly toward the desk, eyeing Laura's reaction. She seemed tense, as if she would attack if Anna made any move to harm the person in the chair.

"I don't know what you are talking about." The voice said, though there was a slight hitch in it. Anna could see a mop of red on the girl...no the young woman's head who had her head bowed and eyes closed. Anna was right, she inched closer and kneeled down to pull the redhead into a hug surprising her.

"We missed you Will, all of us." Anna whispered, rubbing the redhead's back as she apparently gave in and hugged the Anna back with tears flowing freely.

"I missed you to." Will whispered.

"It's really you?" Elizabeth replied astounded as she went to claim her own hug, "H-How?"

"It's a long story, but I still don't want you telling anyone else that I'm here until I'm ready. And Mrs. Lair, make no mistake I _will_ tell my mother…_in my own time_. Right now however, I have much bigger things to finish sorting out than family estrangements." Will sighed making both Anna and Elizabeth share worried looks.


End file.
